From very early on in its development Chinese people already began primitive business activities. With the progress of human civilization, long-range trade gradually appeared. The opening of the trans-Euro-Asia Silk Road injected robust vitality into commercial exchange, and the long-distance trade developed in full swing.

In ancient times, when navigation was undeveloped, long-distance trade primarily depended on travel by road. The journey would often last for several months or years. Silk Road is just such example of a long trading route. People mainly depended on camels, horses and mules to carry their goods. A large trade convoy usually consisted of dozens or even hundreds of camels.In the heyday of Hah and Tang dynasties,groups of traveling merchants and rows of commodities-carrying camels and horses came and went in an endless stream between the East and the West. The double-hump or Bactrian camels from Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia had well known for their strong carrying capabilities. They played the important role of "desert ship" in long-distance transportation over Pamirs and Iran Plateaus.

The unprecedented brisk trade brought boom and prosperity to the ancient countries and city-states along the Silk Road. In its long period of more than one thousand years, the camel caravans always were the most attractive landscape on the horizon of Silk Road in the boundless desert.

Prosperous Trade in Han Dynasty

Silk cloth was the main product,transported by trade caravans to Western Regions, and was well received by the residents in Central and Western Asia as well as in Europe. With increased silk trade, some countries in the Western Regions established transit depots, and actively took part in the silk transportation. For example, Shule (in the present Xinjiang) was an important distributing center, because it was situated at an inter junction for the southern and northern sections of the Silk Road. The people of Kangju were particularly good at trade and in crowds and groups drove camel caravans with fur coats and spices to Chang'an to swap silk products, which in turn were transported to Iran and Central Asia.

Parthia was historically a hub of exchange for goods and information on the Silk Road.It established close trade relations with Hah Dynasty and controlled the silk trade between China and the West for a long time. Great Sino (Roman Empire) at the eastern bank of the Mediterranean Sea was the largest consumer of Chinese silk. In order to break Parthia's monopoly of silk transit trade, it entered into war with Parthia several times. It made efforts to try to open up new direct channels with China.

Chinese trade caravans from Chang'an to the Western Regions were a major force to export silk. The official messengers, dispatched by Han government, were in fact trading officers. They led large camel caravans with great quantities of silk fabrics, gold and flocks and herds, in their official missions. They made extensive contact with the people of Dayuezhi, Persia, Greece and India. In Han dynast, Chinese trade caravans had already reached many countries in Central,Western and Southern Asia. Their footprints were left on the Amu River Darya Valley, northern Caspian Sea,Iran Plateau, northern India,Syria, Roman Empire and countries along the Mediterranean Sea.

Han Emperor Wu was a ruler who appreciated the importance of other cultures and tried to integrate them with Chinese own culture. He built a rest palace in the suburb of Chang'an. It was a royal garden for hunting and other entertainments.Its style embodied the crystallization of Sino-foreign cultural flavors. The stone lion at the gate of the garden was sculptured according to the pattern of Parthia lion. This perhaps was the early origin of Chinese tradition using stone lion guard-ing at gate. On the folding screens in the palace halls were painted Indian peacocks spreading their tails. Chairs and tea tables were embedded with Hotan jades. In the palace were full of spices from India, and it displayed ostrich eggs from Parthia and crystal plates from Qiantu. In the garden planted alfalfa and grapes from Dawan.

The stature of ancient Greek, which was associated with many legendry stories.

There was a interesting story of how Rome's glue was introduced into China and gained the favor of Chinese emperor. This glue was a quality one made of bone extracts. It could glue the broken bows and swords. At first, Wudi would not believe in the power it had. One day, Wudi went hunting in forests.His bowstring broke and the glue at last had its opportunity to show its function. Wudi liked its strong sticking ability and it since then become an important item in the imperial court.

At that time, lots of Xiyu products were exported to Chang'an, such as sesame, figs, pomegranate, mung bean, cucumber, scallion, carrot,garlic, crocus, coriander, rattan, glass, woolen cloth, gem and medicament.Gansu served as a corridor for the products to spread to the hinterland and benefited a great deal from the international and national exchanges.For thousands of years, Gansu planted benne, horsebean, legumina,carrot, shallot, garlic and walnut, all of which originated from the Western Regions. Pomegranate first was planted around Chang'an.Afterwards, it spread to Lintong, 25 kilometers from Chang'an. Owing to its particularly favorable conditions, Lintong's pomegranate is of the best quality, becoming one of the famous Chinese products up to the present.

In the frequent trade exchanges, the highly developed Han Culture also spread to the Western Regions. Famous Chinese products,exported to Xiyu, included lacquerwork, bamboo utensils, copper cash, ginger,cinnamon, rhubarb, Tuckahoe. Of course, the most important among them were silk fabrics and iron and steel.

At that time, a considerable amount of iron and steel was exported from China to the countries in the west regions and beyond including the Kingdom of Parthia. There were two transportation routes, one along the Silk Road westward through Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai and Xinjiang to Parthia; the other from Sichuan via Yunnan into Burma and northern India to the eastern part of Parthia. The Mulu City in northern Parthia was a distributing center for Chinese iron and steel. Some of Chinese iron and steel were transited through Parthia to Rome and other Western countries. Roman author Plinni paid a high tribute to Chinese iron and steel, calling them "excellent products."

Food made of wheat unearthed on the Silk Road.

Han metallurgy and well drill technique were also introduced to Central Asia in a similar way Formerly; the country of Dawan didn't know the smelting and casting technology.It was Han messengers who taught them the know-how. Since then the people of Dawan was able to cast new weapons and began to improve their means of production, turning wooden plough into iron one. When Wudi attacked Dawan and the Chinese army besieged its capital, there was no well in the city and the residents had no water supply source within the city As Chinese soldiers effectively controlled the sources of water to the city, Dawan was forced to surrender and make peace with the Chinese army However in this war, Dawan undoubtedly learnt from Chinese how to dig wells and they acquire the technology in a hard way This technique was very important for the production and life in the Western Regions.

Transnational Businessmen - Greeks and Jews

For generations, Greeks were enterprising businessmen. Even up to,at present time, from Said Port to Madagascar there are many major trade firms, managed by Greeks.

In the time of Alexander the Great, all the land adventurers and navigation explorers were attracted to his side. From Marseilles to Babylon,Greeks were seen everywhere. In the early period of Roman Empire,Greeks and Romans dominated the trading markets boarding the Mediterranean Sea. Even in Rome, there were many Greek agents. They owned extravagant shops and stores in the capital. Greek became effectively a commercial language. Even Jews started to speak Greek too. Sailors and captains were mainly Greeks or Syrians. They sailed in the Mediterranean Sea, transporting Oriental products from Syrian coast and Alexander Port to Rome. And Chinese silk came on the top of the list for the merchants to transport westwards. On the return trip, they carried Italian wine and other products.

Jews were entrepreneurs and had a long history of trade and marketing. They controlled a considerable part of the trade. They played an important role in developing the economies of Mediterranean nations.The settlements of Jews were scattered almost everywhere in the Roman Empire. They left their footprints on all the continents of the world.In Alexander Port, they monopolized the shipping. They exploited markets in Syria. They manipulated parts of the silk trade with the Far East.

Jews in Babylon learnt textile process. Jerusalem and Alexander soon became major textile centers for Jews. Beirut was center for Jew Silk workers. As for printing and dyeing, it was also one of the very important specialties Jews mastered. In AD 2nd century, some professional silk units were consisted exclusively of Jews.

Many of Jews also specialized in the manufacture of colored glass wares. Therefore, they could use glaze artworks, especially the famous necklace beads to pay for silk products. Among Jews there were many great businessmen and bankers. They had accumulated enough moneys and wealth to be capable of developing and participating a trade over a long distance. From AD 4th century they were increasingly engaged in the operation of various exotic products, including silk commodities from remote China.